Why Liberals Should Want Less Government

Stay with me as I bore you for a moment with some philosophizin’. I’ll get to a point shortly…I promise.

In Plato’s Republic, he proposes the idea that philosophers should rule society. This philosopher king would be someone who, through logical reasoning and well thought out opinion, would rule with the community’s best interests at heart. For Plato to come to this conclusion, he would have to believe that everyone else lacks the critical skills or qualifications to rule, and as a result, would be poor rulers.

In other words, non-philosophers are just too stupid, too selfish, too unwilling and/or are just too untrustworthy to govern.

Ancient Selfie of Plato

Without even realizing it, growing numbers of people in the US seem to be agreeing with Plato’s argument… because they are constantly looking to government for answers to their daily problems and have a fundamental belief that individuals are no longer capable of governing themselves.

But, who gets to decide who the philosophers are? Who is the smartest and most fair among us? If you can answer these questions…and have everyone (or least a super majority) agree with you, then you have done something no human as ever done.

You see, a decision of this nature is subjective. My idea of the perfect person to govern, is probably different than yours. It all depends on personal beliefs, upbringing and attentiveness towards the political process. So, no one is actually “worthy” of ruling over the rest of us… no one is more “special” than anyone else, and therefore, no one should be trusted with unchecked power.

Read the last sentence in that previous paragraph again. Now, I’m not proposing complete and total anarchy…I am just pointing out, in an around my ass to my elbow kind of way, that this was the thought process behind our nation’s founding. Individuals and small groups cannot be trusted with unlimited power, and that has been proven over and over again throughout history.

From the times of the Alexander the Great through yesterday, government has failed society. That’s why we have three branches of government…that’s why we have elections…and that’s why what our founding fathers created was so brilliant.

If you agree with me so far, then you must also agree that, by default, governments should be incredibly limited in scope and power.

Oh, you’re not there yet? Okay, let me make one last point.

There are an awful lot of people who believe that individuals in our society cannot make rational decisions and yet, those same people are completely comfortable with allowing 535 “special” individuals, who they’ve never met, make life altering decisions about their healthcare, their means of production and their personal liberties. To top it off, they are also perfectly okay with just one person controlling how those decisions are enforced (see the POTUS’s actual constitutional duties by clicking here).

How often does another person’s best interests and political ideals completely mimic yours? I’ll answer that: Rarely…if ever.

If you don’t know these people and their beliefs on personal level, you should not be trusting them to make decisions in your best interest. You should not expect them to do the right thing just because they say they will in a campaign speech. The phrase “all politicians lie” exists for a reason…because it’s true…and they do…all the time… and anytime a lie will gain them political capital and power.

If you’re a liberal, you must admit that they are no different than those “greedy corporations”…because like those corporations you hate so much, government is also run by, you guessed it, people. So to be consistent in your hate, you SHOULD admit, and prefer, that their power and control over your life be extremely limited.

About The Author

Wes is a father, small business owner and devoted husband who believes that we can and should govern ourselves with as little government intervention as possible. Formerly a staunch Republican, Wes is now a borderline anarchist who promotes liberty over all things.